So basically the 4th catapult is primarily a backup one or to launch planes from the otherside?
CV-18 Fujian/003 CATOBAR carrier thread
- Thread starter Jeff Head
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So basically the 4th catapult is primarily a backup one or to launch planes from the otherside?
Intrepid
Major
The fourth catapult is reserve, gives more options when occupying the flight deck, but it also complicates the distribution of power.
The US Navy had major power distribution problems. The Chinese like to try to conceptually avoid problems. They did that by choosing three catapults.
The US Navy had major power distribution problems. The Chinese like to try to conceptually avoid problems. They did that by choosing three catapults.
I don't think we know if there is anything intrinsic to the PLAN's EM catapults and power management system that makes four catapults unhandle-able (theoretically, for a larger 100,000t carrier), or if in the case of 003 there are other factors at play (I've speculated that flight deck size and the ship's overall power generation could both be reasons why they have three rather than four).
it is impossible to literally use all 4 catapults simultaneously without the aircraft hitting each other. At best 4 catapults all saw staggered use within a certain period of time. If the 4 catapults are all in working order, then all 4 could certainly be arranged to all see staggered use within a long enough period of time. The crux of the question is over a given period of time, can using all 4 catapults in a staggered manner get more aircraft into the air than just using three In a staggered manner.
if not, then the claim that all 4 catapults are used simultaneously is misleading for the purpose of the discussion here. yes, all 4 catapults are in use, but the usage is more accurately described as rotating rather than simultaneous.
also, keep in mind during the 1960s and 1970s, a good percentage of planes on US carrier decks are the relatively tiny A4s, which , if I am not mistaken, is much smaller and lighter than any catapult aircraft currently I. Service anywhere in the world. So the steam use associated with launching A4s might be much less than launching any aircraft today. So even if available steam allows catapults to cycle fast enough with A4s, such that using 4 catapults together really can get more planes into the air faster than using 3 together, that does not mean the same remains true with heavier modern catapult aircrafts.
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Nuclear is so 20th century. What appears to be the smokestack is actually where the ship draws in hydrogen from the air to power its 500 gigawatt fusion reactor. The reason why they have 3 instead of 4 catapults is because they had to make space for the wave motion gun, which is powered by said fusion reactor.
Fusion reactor is so 21st century. We all know the Chinese carrier use limitless quantum energy with a zero point field generator. It appears to have 3 catapults purely because 2 fakes were added to conceal from prying eyes how advanced its one real catapult actually is.. That catapult use tractor beams to grab all aircraft on deck simultaneously and through them into the air at escape velocity all at once. And thanks to zero point energy it can do that 60 times a second.
Wow. Is this real???
No, it's fake.